Vessel

early 20th century

Kha'p'oo Owinge (Santa Clara) and Po-woh-ge-oweenge (San Ildefonso) are neighboring Pueblos along the Rio Grande River in northern New Mexico. Both have a long tradition of making black and red ware pottery. In 1919, Maria Martinez and her husband, Julian Martinez, from Po-woh-ge-oweenge invented the black-on-black technique in which polished black and matte black alternate to create a stunning but subtle design. Black-on-black pottery became immediately popular, and many potters began adopting this technique, including potters from Kha'p'oo Owinge.